Meghan Varner

Today I am thankful for encouragement. via  here I love and am so moved when I am on the receiving end of encouragement from others about a new endeavor, current endeavor, uncertainty, etc.  But I also am so happy and impressed when I hear others being encouraged..from a little kid trying to ride a bike to an adult about to make a speech, etc.  The sentiment and support behind encouraging others is often just something I take for granted and today I am thankful for it!

I am thankful for hot chocolate, heat-heated seats, heated blankets, etc., warm sweaters, mittens, scarves, etc. I am a wuss when it first turns cold..I need a few weeks to not be shivering and turning blue!  Well we got into the low 30s tonight and I was out and about and just with my sweatshirt..until I raided the backseat and I got all the warmy goods I needed!! So thank you to the items that kept me and keep me warm and safe in wintery weather!

mmmmmm  so good and SO EASY!!! This was my first attempt at something that was not just a box..now admittedly part of it is just a mix in the box..but that is what gave me courage to say let's go for it!! I was watching  Food Network ...saw the amazing Paula Deen making this cake and was like I think I can do this (huge I know since I had watched this channel for oh YEARS without attempting a single recipe!!) First time I made it I made it with cherries instead of blueberry b/c dad doesn't like blueberry and NO pecans (neither dad or I like them..mom does though poor lady). Second time I made it I did not have a pie filling so just used a fruit cocktail.  Third time I used blueberry pie filling and pecans as instructed...have to say it..the third time was the BEST..thought the cherry was pretty amazing as well:)  This non-pecan loving gal actually thought the pecans made the cake..it had a crisper texture on top to even out the go...

*Three of the furbabies- Ms.Taylor, Mr. BlackJack and Ms. Scarlett!!!  Please remember all pictures are mine and not to be used without permission.  Thank you**

New adventures! Today my family and I are going to start a new class at the church and it made me reflect on the concept of new adventures and how things are yup...changing!  I am so grateful for the opportunity to have new adventures and see what I can learn and where I go! What new adventures are you off and exploring??

A little dash of cuteness for y'all today! Snuggle bugs someone has a new buddy!! Why must she continue taking my picture?? dashing fellow isn't he? Such a lady!

I love LOVE love Spanakopita!!  I make my parents go with me to the local Greek restaurant at least once as week so I can order it.  When I go to the Greek festival each year I must have it.  And I must go to more than one city's Greek festival!  These things are delicious! So when we were at Sams Club the other day and saw these I had to try them!  Overall they are good.  They do not have the exact same flavor profile as the fresh ones from the Greek restaurant or festival in my home town, but I also can't tell what exactly is missing. They come 6 in a row, don't break apart before cooking and very easy to separate after cooking. Much smaller than the ones I get at the restaurant and festival, so this is actually three that I placed to take a picture and have my family try. As I said they overall are good and while I would prefer to go the Greek restaurant, on days I couldn't get there or they are closed this would b...

The start of the holiday season!! I love the crispness in the air (during the holidays), how everyone is talking about family/traditions/Christmas/Thanksgiving/etc.  I love the general feel that everyone is trying to be nice/pleasant/helpful to each other.  This time of year is fantastic for reflection and for just thinking about how thankful and blessed we truly are in our every day lives!

Who doesn't love deviled eggs?  So good and they just scream holiday meal (though to be honest my family makes them all the time!!) I normally follow my mother's method which is cooking the eggs, then taking the yolk, mayonnaise, salt and pepper.  I have always added to it just a dollop of mustard.  Yes dollop b/c I have never measured ingredients until the last few weeks..oppsie! Well when I made these the other day I wanted to expand my cooking knowledge box..so Food Network to the rescue!  I found a recipe from Sandra Lee HERE or you can see it below! My finished product on my mom's lovely Christmas plate! DIRECTIONS: Mash 6  hard-boiled egg yolks , 2 tablespoons  mayonnaise  or yogurt , 1 1/2 teaspoons  spicy mustard , 1/2 teaspoon  lemon juice , 1 teaspoon  relish  and 1/2 teaspoon  paprika . Fill the egg whites with the yolk mixture. Top with chopped  chives  and...

I am thankful for you!! Each day as I work on my blog, my writing, what I review, how to cook, etc. I am thrilled and so thankful that more and more people are checking it out and giving feedback!  Really it makes me ecstatic b/c while this is fun to write and keep up, I do not want to do it just as an online journal for myself.  haha, I want this to be a way to connect to other bloggers, job seekers, readers, cooks, etc.! So thank you.  Thank you for taking the time to read about me, my endeavors and my blog posts! via  here

Okay the title is a bit long and so is the name of the dish...BUT we needed a dinner and had these ingredients so I plugged them into the handy little Google app...and VIOLA!  dinner recipes were abundant!  You can find the recipe  HERE on Food.com or below with my pictures! ** I did not have margarine- I used smart start butter.  I did not have flour-I used NOTHING. I did not use milk, I used lactaid free milk.  I can't eat onions..so I used onion powder! I did not have "diced cooked ham" I had deli ham that I cut up into smaller pieces:)..and; I did not have a thing to shred the cheese with so I cut up enough cheese into small/very small pieces** Ingredients: Servings: 6 Units: US | Metric 2 cups uncooked pasta, I used rotini 10 ounces of chopped broccoli, thawed 2 tablespoons stick margarine 1/4 cup chopped sweet onion 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour 1 1/2-2 cups milk 3/4 teaspoon dry mustard (to taste) ...

I love pizza.  I think it is fantastic.  Unfortunately pizza does not love me.  I have tried many types of pizza and still get sick...sooo I have been trying to be more aware of gluten items and trying to incorporate that into my life and see if I feel better. *Yes I know that it is recommended to go to a doctor, but when I went I was told nothing is wrong with me..and yet I still get ill frequently..sooo** I got this Pizza as a "gift" from family to try and see if it would make me sick or not.  Well I made it last night and...I thought it was FANTASTIC..and BONUS no illness afterwards! It was super easy to make...just 2 tbsp of oil, 2 eggs, optional cheese (I used cheddar), and then 1/4 cup water or milk (I used silk).  Once everything is put into a bowl just mix and blend until smooth.  From there I placed it on a pan, spread it out for a good amount and then added my ingredients.  Once all of the ingredients were placed on the crust I baked ...

Today I am grateful for Silence. I am a very talkative person, but I also enjoy and appreciate the gift of and power of silence.  Sometimes a comfortable silence is worth more between two people then all the gabbing in the world.  So today I am thankful for the use and gift of silence.

Today I am thankful sunrises, naps and sunsets!! While I did not partake in the Black Friday shopping, I did observe all three of the above items!  And they were all magnificent! **I will be posting about holiday events/fun after tomorrow b/c I still have family events tomorrow, but thank y''all for all the warm wishes and thoughts this Thanksgiving!!**

The little things... Today on Thanksgiving Day, I am thankful for the little things.  The things that I take for granted or that I do not thank about in a separate train of thoughts.  For these things and all the little things that make my happy or help make me happy and others happy I am so grateful and thankful!! Hope everyone has a blessed Thanksgiving Day with family and friends!!  Stay tuned for some great cooking adventures on this here turkey day (ps we don't have turkey at my house...we do ham!)

I have only dyed my hair twice by myself, once with Perfect 10 and then this time with John Frieda. Ease wise they are about the same, but colour wise I have to say I really enjoyed the John Frieda product. I was super nervous about doing my own hair (especially going from blonde to red...but the instruction, the product and the process were easy as 1-2-3! The product was a little under $12, which considering my hair usually costs $75-125 what a STEAL!!  The smell was light to none, especially when thinking about normal smells to go blonde.  The wait was 20-30 minutes to see how the final color turned out. Overall I am very happy!  I am not exactly the shade I want, but that is my fault in reading the color spectrum, not the product.  So in a few weeks I will be buying another box to get to the exact shade of red I want. The blonde I was  The redhead I became! Final thoughts~  To those looking to save money, try something new, l...

Tradition...yes the other day I was thankful for changes, but today it is all about family traditions! I love looking forward to certain things and some family traditions are on that list.  Today was the Spencer-Salisbury Holiday Caravan that I have attended almost every year since I was 5 or 6.  I was able to go to it today with my parents and some of the furbabies and I am so thankful for that! There has  been quite a few years that we were not able to attend as a family b/c of health reasons and so to be there today and to enjoy it with each other was fantastic! Ms. Taylor in her Ms. Claus finest!! Mr. BlackJack in his Mr. Claus finest!!

OMG...just mmmmmmm Not to toot my own horn, but wow these were good!!  I finally understood the difference in frozen v. fresh meatballs (I had heard  Gordon Ramsay and Bobby Flay talk about it before, but did not really think it made a huge difference...I was WRONG).  The recipe I found used frozen meatballs, but I found a recipe for fresh meatballs and then had to tweak that since I did not have all the ingredients. SO I am going to post pictures...and also the two recipes (but with my changes above the actual recipe) MEATBALLS I put all my ingredients together beforehand...when I realized I did not have Parmesan cheese, bread crumbs or parsley!! After doubling the recipe, mixing it all together I had 35 meatballs and they were cooking away! 20 minutes later, a bit smaller, cooked and smelling/tasting firm, moist and flavorful! I started with Alton Brown's recipe for baked meatballs and then tweaked it since I was missing some in...